Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1887-12-21
RUSSIA DESIRES PEACE.


And to Prove it Compares Her war1ike
Preparations with Those of Her Neigh
bors.
ST. PETERSBURG, Dec 15.-The official
military organ, the Gazette, says to-day
that owing to the alarm raised by the
Austrian press in consequence of the
transfer of some Russian cavalry to the
Warsaw district, it is advisable to con-
slider the military position of Russia and
her western frontier neighbors IN order
to throw light upon the question of who
is really preparing to attack and who Tor
defense. During the past five years
the peace effective Of the German
army has been increased siXty-hve bat
talions and 3S4 guns. The German
troops on the Russian frontier have been
increased twenty-oue battalions of in
fantrv, tNentv-seven batteries OF artlll-
cry and fifteen squadrons of cavalry.
Since 1873 Germany has built In the the
Eastern provinces 1850 kilometers of
railroads by means of which troops can
be forwarded to the Russian frontier and
ten junction stations where they can be
rapidly thrown out of trains and cOncen-
trated. Germany has formed tirst-class
fortresses at Thorn, Posen. Dantzic and
konigsberg, and is building a similar
fortress at Grardenz. Austria has
added nine to twenty-three infantry
divisions which formerly constituted
her effective, and would add
ton of the army fourteen Land
wehr or Honvel divisions. The Galician
garrisons have been reinforced during
1887 by eighteen squadrons of cavalry
and thirteen batteries of artillery, all
provided with a full complement of
horses. In the Austrian districts, which
might become the theater of war with
Russia. 4,500 kilometers of railroads
with four branches have been construct
ed since 1878.
Six Austrian railways are available
for throwing into Gallcia large bodies OF
troops, who. by means of the new juno
ton stations, can be placed in position
on the Russian frontier. Military huts,
Lemburg, Premsyl, JawslaW, DembitZa,
Riaschef, and other points The
fortresses at Przemysl and Cracow have
been converted into camp fortresses.
Russian territory can be bombarded
from the Cracow fort. A large quantity
of rolling stock has been accumulated at
Cracow, adapted for use on Russian rail-
ways
''All these preparations are meaning
less except in view of offensive tactics, +"
the paper affrms, land show that Aus
tria. under semblance Of defense is at
the same time preparing to invade Rus
STA simultaneously with her ally.
But what is Russia doing in view Of her
neIghbors' threatening preparations
Notwithstanding the manifest danger
Russia considers that a European
war would be terrible misfortune
to all mankind. She was the
first who, amid her neighbors'
feverish armaments, did not increase
but decreased her defensive forces. In
1881 and 1882 Russia reduced her peace
effective nearly 100000 men. True, she
raised it again in consequence Of the
Afghan war and the necessity of i'm
proving her readiness to mobolize
where her neighbors unremlttingly
raised their fighting strength. Never
theless the peace effective of the Rus
sian army is now "a. lS5 less than in
1881, While her neighbors in the same
effective $4,000. Doubtless Russia
IN the event of war will assemble a
mighty army, the concentration of which
on one frontier will be incomparab bly,
more difficult for her than will be the
concentration by her neighbors OF their
forces at the same place. During the
last ten years 2.S20 kilometres of rail-
way have been constructed in the West
err provinces of Russia. In the Ger
man and Austrian Eastern provinces
during the same period $500 kilome-
ters have been built. Moreover the
area in which Russia has constructed
railways is twice as large as that in which
her neighbors have built such lines"